Results of the Groomer Shopping Survey 2002

In 2002, a record number of groomers completed PetGroomer.com Groomer Shopping Surveys. More than Grooming Pricing 2,000 surveys were completed. The U.S. (91%) and Canada (7%) were best represented by the survey. All areas of the U.S. were represented in alignment with their population density. The largest area of response was the Eastern Time Zone with 40% of groomers surveyed residing there followed by 29% for the Pacific Time Zone.

Just where do most groomers shop for grooming supplies? Good question. Ask this question of most members of the industry and you will get an answer quickly. However, we found that their answers were more accurately assumptions rather than the results of a professional study. We saw the problem and created the Groomer Shopping Survey for 2002. Keep in mind that our surveys are conducted online. Cyber-groomers with Internet access are more likely to feel comfortable shopping for grooming supplies online.

79% of all surveyed groomers shop mail order catalogs a moderate amount or greater. However, 54% of that group said "moderate" and not "a lot." That means they shop other sources. 83% of all surveyed groomers shop online at least "a little." One online shopper we surveyed said, "My biggest concern is the returns policy for online shopping, so I stick with companies that make returns easy." Another source of grooming supplies is the traveling distributor making business calls on grooming businesses. 69% of all surveyed groomers occasionally buy products from distributors that make business calls. One buyer from traveling distributors said, "I really enjoy seeing my distributor face to face and asking them the opinions of other groomers about the products they sell. I wish groomers talked more with each other. We could share a lot of information about our experience with products before we buy."

The biggest incentive to purchase from a vendor of grooming products was a low price guarantee (28%) and next at 21% was not having a minimum order restriction.

The most popular source for finding information about pet grooming products was online (36%) followed by trade magazines (24%) and other groomers (22%). One surveyed groomer said, "I ask other groomers about their experience with different products on message boards. It's great. I think I saved myself some money on buying products I probably wouldn't have liked after talking with other groomers who had used the products."

We asked groomers how often they purchase larger tag items like cages and tubs. 53% said every 2 years, and 42% said every 3 years or more. Averaged yearly, the average annual expenditure on larger tag items was $2,000 or less for 92% of all surveyed groomers. An impressive 82% said they use credit cards to make these purchases in order to make monthly payments on these purchases. 59% said they had at least 1 credit card reserved for business use. Just about everyone (98%) said they do not lease grooming equipment or caging systems.

95% of all surveyed groomers said they annually spend $1,000 or less on grooming tools (clippers, blades, etc). 39% said they buy 4-7 clipper blades a year and 32% said 7 to 10 clipper blades a year. 64% own 2 brands of clippers, and 39% own 2 brands of scissors. There was no dominant clipper manufacturer that ranked clearly as the favorite. However, Andis clippers were the favorite of 33% of surveyed groomers, and closely followed by Kim Laube, then Wahl, and finally Oster.

37% of all groomer surveyed used 3 different brands of shampoos and conditioners. Only 5% used 1 brand only. The majority have blades sharpened on a quarterly basis (39%) but that was closely followed by 38% saying "monthly." Trade magazines were the favorite source for finding a blade sharpener (34%) but that was closely followed by 31% ask for a referral from other groomers.

89% of all surveyed groomers said they sell little or no resale merchandise to pet owners, and 52% of what is sold is pet care product related such as shampoos, combs and brushes. Reselling flea and tick treatments ranked second with 17% of groomers surveyed. 52% of all groomers surveyed markup their resale merchandise by 40% and 37% use a 50% markup factor. Most groomers surveyed (55%) said they allocate 100 square feet or less of their business space for merchandise sales.

You can review other results of this survey here.

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